Australia | Australia's participation in Eurovision confirmed until 2023
Australia's Eurovision Song Contest host broadcaster, SBS, has confirmed that the country will continue to compete in the contest until at least 2023. The news comes just days after Australia chose Kate Miller-Heidke to fly their flag at Eurovision 2019 in Tel Aviv, Israel with the song 'Zero Gravity' following the country's first ever live televised national final, 'Australia Decides', and could add further fuel to a fire which has raged since Australia were initially announced as one-off special guest participants for the 60th anniversary Eurovision in 2015 in Vienna, Austria. Check out Kate's national final performance here.
Speculation that Australia would join the Eurovision family first gained substance when the country was given an interval act slot during the 2nd semi-final of the 2014 contest in Copenhagen, Denmark - part of which involved a performance by Jessica Mauboy singing her own song 'Sea of Flags'. Jessica would go on to represent Australia at Eurovision 2018 in Lisbon, Portugal, where she would finish 20th - the country's worst Eurovision result to date. As a country, however, SBS has been broadcasting Eurovision for some 35 years as well as broadcasting every Junior Eurovision Song Contest since that contest was founded in 2003.
Since officially joining the Eurovision family in 2015, Australia have returned some very respectable results in the contest - reaching the Grand Final every year, with their best finish coming in 2016 when South Korean-born Dami Im placed 2nd with her song 'Sound of Silence'. Australia also joined the Junior Eurovision family in 2015, and have an equally excellent record in the contest - with their lowest finish coming in their debut year when Bella Paige, who came 2nd in Australia's version of The X Factor in 2018, finished 8th with her song 'My Girls' in Sofia, Bulgaria.
What do you make of both Australia's confirmed Eurovision participation for the next four years and their song for Eurovision 2019? Let us know in the comments below and on our Facebook, Twitter and Instagram pages.
